Monica dominguez alvarez

Interior of the Convent of Tzintzuntzan. The syncretic Indian-Christian mode of architecture developed organically as Indians interpreted European architectural and decorative features in the native, pre-Columbian style called tequitqui "laborer" or "mason", from Nahuatl. These were conceived of as fortresses , but based architecturally on the European conventual model, incorporating new features such as the open chapel and atriums with a stone cross at the center; they were characterized by different decorative elements. These buildings, spread across the central part of what is now Mexico, contain superb examples of the indigenous mastery of architecture and the sculptural arts.